This week America will celebrate Thanksgiving Day, an event that dates back to the 16th century when the Pilgrims gave thanks to God for guiding them safely to the new world. On December 26, 1941, President Roosevelt signed into law a bill making Thanksgiving Day a National Holiday to be celebrated on the fourth Thursday of each November. One day set aside every year for a national thanksgiving to God for the blessings He has bestowed upon this nation. David, the man after God’s own heart said, “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to your name, O most High. (Psalm 92:1) Solomon also saw the benefits of a joyful, thankful heart, saying, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drieth the bones”. (Proverbs 17:22) What a gift it is to be born with a thankful heart and attitude, one who sees the bright side of things. Happy are they who possess this gift.

This week our nation will celebrate Independence Day! Over 200 years ago this country obtained victory over an oppressive nation, thus ensuring our freedom. Freedom is not free. It cost the blood of thousands who died in order for us to be free today. And, it continues to cost the lives and blood of those willing to make the supreme sacrifice for us to remain free. Therefore, it is right and proper that we celebrate this Independence Day by honoring and supporting those who gave their lives for our protection and freedom (Romans 13: 6-7); (I Peter 2: 13-17);(I Timothy 2: 1-2).

Over 2000 years ago there was another one who was willing to make the supreme sacrifice for our freedom, and even greater freedom – victory over sin and death. “For the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death” (Rom. 8:2).
Likewise, this freedom did not come without great cost. It cost the blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (Acts 20:28).
How does one obtain this freedom? It is clearly through the gospel of Jesus Christ; by “knowing” it (John 8:32) and by “doing” it (Matt. 7:24-27).

One cannot be made free unless they are first willing to humbly and obediently submit to the Gospel of the Lord.

Proverbs 4:23 – “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.” KJV

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flows the springs of life.” ESV

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” NLT

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” NIV

This has been a favorite verse of mine for years and comes to mind so many times just when I need it! This is something I hope to teach my children as they grow, to protect their heart at any cost to the world around them. That all they do comes from within their hearts.

Matthew Henry’s commentary on this verse reminds us to keep a watchful eye and a strict hand upon all the motions of our inward man. God who gave us these souls, gave us strict charge with them. Keeping our hearts from doing hurt and getting hurt, from being defiled by sin and disturbed by trouble. Keep out bad thoughts, keep in good thoughts! We must keep our hearts with more care than anything else, more than our eyes, our tonuges, our feet. Our hearts must be kept not neglected!

We are known by our fruits, our words.

Luke 6:45 – “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” ESV

The true nature of a person can be known by what they speak. Their heart is shown by how they conduct themselves.

Matthew 12:33-37 – “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” ESV

So a tree is known by its fruit so we are known by our words! Therefore keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

Proverbs 22:6

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Ephesians 6:4

And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Example of Timothy – 2 Timothy 1:5 – When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.

2 Timothy 3:14-17

But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

TEACHERS

James 3:1, 13

My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation.

Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom.

2 Timothy 2:14-26

Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some. Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work. Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes. And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR DEACONS

1 Timothy 3:8-13

Likewise must the deacons be grave, not double tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;

Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.

And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless.

Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things.

Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

For they that have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR ELDERS

1 Timothy 3:1-7

This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.

A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;

Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;

One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;

(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)

Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.

Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

Titus 1:5-9

For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:

If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.

For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;

But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate;

Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.

Just as God has defined the role of the father, He has also made His intentions known regarding the role of a Godly mother. Like so many other clear biblical teachings, the role of the woman is first established in Genesis 2:
Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it . . . Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him . . . ” So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man . . . For t his reason a man shall leave his father and mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.
In the midst of our often chaotic society, it is important to remember that this was God’s good and original design. God created woman to complete what was lacking in Adam, that she might become his helper, that the two of them would truly become one.

Many other passages from God’s Word reveal the role that God has designed for wives and mothers. One of the more pointed and all-encompassing is found in Proverbs 31:10–31. These verses portray a beautiful picture of the woman God designed wives and mothers to be. Here are some excerpts:
An excellent wife, who can find? Her worth is far above jewels . . . The heart of her husband trusts in her . . . She does him good and not evil . . . she works willingly with her hands…She rises while it is still night and gives food to her household . . . She considers a field and buys it; from her earnings she plants a vineyard . . . She extends her hand to the poor . . . Strength and dignity are her clothing . . . She opens her mouth in kindness and wisdom . . . She is not lazy…She is respected by her husband and children…..She is praised for her respect of God rather th an vanity and beauty.

God Is Truly Glorified By The Women Who Fulfill Their Role In Being A Christian Wife And Mother. Happy Mother’s Day, We Love You and Appreciate All You Do!

When I was pregnant with my second sitting in Sunday morning service alone as my husband worked weekends at the time. My sixteen month old son twisting around on my lap, wanting up then down, and playing pickup with toys. It hit me all the sudden that I could not let him do any of this with a new little one to tend to…

I had watched Super Nanny featuring Jo for a long time and used her techniques on my own children which worked amazingly at home. So when it came time to devise a plan for church services, I followed them again and it works!

#1 – Set your expectations and tell your child ahead of time how you wish for him/ her to behave while in service. Explain that this is Mama’s time to listen and learn. Tell them you expect them to be respectful to you and those around them by keeping quiet and sitting still.

#2 – Practice at home, give yourself twenty to thirty minutes each day to sit on the couch with your little one next to you, take this time to read a book or just sit still. Do not use media of any kind for this time, you are not going to be watching TV or on your phone during service so don’t practice that either.

#3 – Teach them a few simple signs for communication during this set quiet time. I choose “all done”, “more”, and “book”.

#4 – Place the child in the pew/ chair next to you in the sitting position, and replace them every time they get up, turn around, or scoot over too much. The key to success in this process is here, following through with this one every time and I mean every time!

#5 – Something dropped is something dropped, don’t give in to the pickup game. The first few times bring extra things to have on hand this enforces the dropped rule while also keeping them engaged to quietness, when something is dropped use the sign language movement of “all done” then allow a few minutes before giving them another item, this shows the child that they are not rewarded for losing the toy but also continuing to keep the settled.

#6 – Say thank you! When your little one has been successful in keeping quiet and sitting still tell them good job! Reward them with your love and attention not a toy or treat as that will become expected.

Some keys things to help in your success…

·Take your child to the restroom before service begins, let them try even if they don’t go explain that this is the time and try to stick to this as a rule that you do not get up during worship time even for the bathroom. Obviously this will very greatly upon the age of your kids, how many you have, are they potty training, any in diapers, medical conditions, and any other personal issues that arise..

·Don’t give them their entertainment until the preacher begins his sermon. Give them time to just look around and be a little bored, they will be more engaged with their quiet resource when they do receive it. I would rather have a fussing child in the middle of a song than the sermon. Also this is a shorter time frame for complete quiet instead of the entire service although that is the end goal. Snacks usually keep kids quieter than activities. I always started the snack time when the preacher begin his sermon as to limit entertainment items needed.

This Valentine’s Day is coming soon, start loving your man now! Here is a simplified quick list of daily ways to love your husband leading up to Valentine’s Day! They are adapted from the book The Husband Project by Kathi Lipp. Get yourself a copy of the book and learn some ways to let your man know just how much he means to you, including recipes togain access to his heart via his stomach! Find the book here: www.kathilipp.com – The Husband Project